This invention relates to articles which are useful as a dry erase board and a projection screen, as well as methods of making the same. More specifically, the invention relates to articles which have a dry erasable topcoat with a specific gloss and a pigmented layer.
Office environments are usually occupied with a writing board such as a chalk or dry erase board and a projector screen. Businesses are often changing their facilities to accommodate changes in personal and business needs. Often rooms are redesigned to provide conference rooms which were once personal office space. Conference rooms previously contained both a writing board and a projection screen. It is desirable to provide a single article which can meet the need for the writing surface and projection screen.
Dry erase boards have been used as a writing surface for years because of their convenience and versatility. The boards provide a means for expression which eliminates the mess and trouble of a chalk board. These boards however are not useful as projection surfaces because of the glare associated with the surface of the dry erase board. If the ordinary dry erase board was used as the projection surface the glare and reflection of the projection bulb leads to eye strain and fatigue to the viewers.
It is desirable to have a multi functional article which acts effectively as a dry erase board and a projection screen.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,200,853, issued to Berkman, relates to a board for screening and writing and a method for the production thereof. The patent discloses a durable multipurpose screening board which comprises an upper section comprising at least two superposed layers of transparent overlay sheets, each of the sheets weighing between 2 and 120 grams per square meter and having been soaked in a solution or melt of a polymeric resin material to subsequently form an intermediate solid plastic layer, the upper surface of the upper sheet being roughened by a plurality of closely-spaced complementary depressions of the depth between 0.01 mm and 0.2 mm, the core section comprising a paper sheet weighing between 60 and 140 grams per square meter and having soaked in a solution or melt of a polymeric resin material to subsequently form an intermediate solid plastic layer.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,361,164, issued to Steliga, relates to a projection markerboard. The markerboard has a bi-directional lenticular embossed surface. The light reflecting writing surface is preferably made of a thin film of fluoropolymer, such as a modified copolymer of ethylene and tetrafluoroethylene.
The invention relates to an article, useful as a dry erasable substrate and projection screen, comprising a top layer which is dry erasable and whose surface has a 60xc2x0 gloss of less than about 60. The article provides a projection surface which has low gloss and therefore causes little eye strain and viewer fatigue. The dry erase board provides good write/ rewrite characteristics, erasability, including wet erasability and has good image projection. The article may additionally have one or more of layers which include a pressure sensitive adhesive, support layer, a pigmented layer which is a pressure sensitive adhesive or a pigmented polymer or polymer blend, and a back coat which is optionally pigmented.